Fortune News | Dec 05,2020
Mar 20 , 2021
By Kidist Yidnekachew ( Kidist Yidnekachew has degrees in psychology and journalism and communications. She can be reached at kidyyidnekachew@gmail.com. )
It is unclear how he would have reacted today, but an optimistic expat in Ethiopia surprised me with an act most locals would not do.
“I don’t lock the doors when I sleep, because in your country, I know I am safe,” he said to me.
This was a few years back. I wonder if he still feels the same way today. I do not; at least not after what happened to me recently.
During daylight, a thief invited himself into my house, unplugged my phone from the charger, and took it while my husband and child slept. I had left the door open when I went downstairs for a few minutes, leaving the front door and gate open.
The neighbourhood is usually safe. Besides, I did not plan on staying away too long. At first, I just wanted to go down the stairs, and then I spontaneously decided to go to the parking area. The fact that the front door was open and my phone was laying on the arm of the couch in the living room did not even cross my mind. It probably took me 15 minutes or less to return, but it was too late.
After looking for the phone futilely for some time, we asked our neighbour if she had seen anybody come into the house. She did. She saw someone’s silhouette through the curtains but assumed it was one of my family members.
The audacity of what happened and how crime has evolved these days was astounding. The other day on our block, a TV was stolen, in broad daylight this time also. Perhaps it is expected, considering the sharp rise in the cost of living. When the economy is slow and unable to create the necessary amount of jobs, it does not take much mental gymnastics to assume that crime would be on the rise.
But this knowledge was not going to stop my husband and I. After repeated tries, the phone was answered by the burglar. I explained that the phone contains family photos and work documents and what his price was. The burglar asked for 3,000 Br. This was a reasonable price, he insisted, since he had already found a buyer for 4,000 Br.
“By the way, I found the phone on the floor, and I am trying to be cooperative by agreeing to give it back to you for this price,” he said, after asking for the password to the phone.
I lost it and screamed, “You can keep the phone, thief.”
I wanted to go on, but he hung up. Later, when I cooled down, we were looking for the silver lining to what happened. He could have taken other stuff too. My husband’s phone was on the table by the bed next to him, for instance. Most importantly, he could have taken the most valuable thing to me, my son. Indeed, kidnappings are not new.
It pays to be careful and vigilant. In the end, a rise in rates of crime is an indication of a lack of jobs, opportunities and, more importantly, hope. It is all the more reason to work to slow down the escalating price of living and jumpstart the slowed economic momentum.
On this one occasion, I was grateful that it was just my phone the burglar took; it could have been worse. The incident has taught me a lesson but left me paranoid. Now I close the front door even though I am inside the house. I wonder if that expat is keeping his optimism or has changed his mind.
PUBLISHED ON
Mar 20,2021 [ VOL
21 , NO
1090]
Fortune News | Dec 05,2020
Fortune News | Dec 14,2019
Fortune News | Jan 25,2020
Sunday with Eden | Dec 25,2021
Fortune News | May 02,2020
Fortune News | Mar 13,2020
Fortune News | Nov 23,2019
Commentaries | Oct 23,2021
Fortune News | Apr 20,2019
Fortune News | Apr 13,2019
Photo Gallery | 63968 Views | May 06,2019
Photo Gallery | 55848 Views | Apr 26,2019
Fortune News | 50926 Views | Jul 18,2020
Fortune News | 50508 Views | Sep 01,2021
Dec 24 , 2022
Biniam Mikru heads the department of cabinet affairs under Mayor Adanech Abiebie. But...
Jul 2 , 2022 . By RUTH TAYE
On a rainy afternoon last week, a coffee processing facility in the capital's Akaki-Qality District was abuzz with activ...
Nov 27 , 2021
Against my will, I have witnessed the most terrible defeat of reason and the most sa...
Nov 13 , 2021
Plans and reality do not always gel. They rarely do in a fast-moving world. Every act...
Jan 21 , 2023
Eyob Tekalign, state minister for Finance, took to social media platforms last week t...
Jan 14 , 2023
The longing for normalcy and a semblance of individual and collective security in Eth...
Jan 7 , 2023
The hallmark of Ethiopia's contemporary leaders could be a fascination with grandeur...
Dec 31 , 2022
A change of guards in 2018 gave Ethiopians hope for better circumstances from the pre...
Jan 21 , 2023
Fewer couples tied the knot in 2022 than the year before; the post-pandemic environment could be attributed to over 12,000 more married coup...
A women's rehabilitation and skill development centre foresees construction as Mayor Adanech Abiebie laid...
Contractors are apprehensive about buying a policy from insurance companies as the requisite for collateral is half the performance bond. Af...
Jan 21 , 2023
Two federal offices of the highest stature saw newly appointed young leaders installed last week. Parliam...
Loading your updates...